Santa Maria Tri-Tip with Spring Asparagus

Score: 8/10

This is a flavorful, well-conceived recipe that correctly utilizes all listed ingredients and offers excellent meat-cutting advice. However, the sequencing of the grill steps needs adjustment so the cook isn't waiting on the grill to preheat, and to prevent the grilled vegetables from getting cold while the meat finishes cooking and resting.

Strengths

Excellent instruction on how to properly slice a tri-tip by acknowledging the change in grain direction.
Precise and accurate tracking of divided ingredients (olive oil and garlic).
Great use of a two-zone grilling setup for properly cooking a thick cut like tri-tip.
The bright, acidic tomato-herb relish perfectly balances the rich, smoky beef.

Issues

medium / timing: Grill preheating is introduced in Step 4 after the potatoes are already boiled. Preheating a grill takes 10-15 minutes, causing an unnecessary pause in the cooking workflow.
high / timing: Step 6 instructs to grill the vegetables (which takes 6-10 minutes) while the beef cooks indirectly (which takes 18-28 minutes), before a 10-minute rest. The vegetables will be cold by the time the beef is ready to be sliced and served.

Suggested fixes

Move the instruction to 'Heat a grill for two-zone cooking' to Step 1 or Step 2 so the grill is ready by the time the vegetables are prepped.
Change Step 6 so that the asparagus and potatoes are grilled during the beef's 10-minute resting period, ensuring they are hot and fresh for plating.